Michigan Rush Advances In State Cup

Created on Tuesday, 01 October 2013 11:19

The 2013 MSYSA State Cup Tournament is well underway, and the Michigan Rush is excited to announce a great deal of success thus far in this year’s competition. With pool play completed, Michigan Rush will observe it’s U14, U16, U17 and U18 girls teams from Northville and it’s U15 and U16 girls teams from Downriver advance to the knockout stage!

The knockout stage of the State Cup tournament will begin this weekend, the weekend of October 5th and 6th, at the Saginaw Township Soccer Complex. The U14-U16 teams will play their ‘round of 16’ matches on Saturday, October 5th. All U14-U16 teams who advance through that round, as well as all advancing U17 and U18 teams, will then play in Quarterfinal matches at the same location on Sunday, October 6th.

The Northville U17 girls have made back-to-back appearances in the State Cup final, finishing as runners-up in 2011 and as champions in 2012. Expectations are high for the group again in this year’s competition, but the pressure does not seem to be affecting them at all thus far; the team finished with a record of 3-0-0 in group play, scoring 9 goals and conceding none. Coach Angel Calzadilla feels confident that his team will continue to take it one game at a time and work hard to earn a place in the championship match once again.

The Northville U14 girls, who suffered a tough 1-0 loss to the Grand Rapids Crew Jrs. in the State Cup quarterfinals last year, are also riding high after winning their group. Coach Eric Rudland and the team hope to keep the momentum as they move forward, after posting an impressive 3-0-0 record (11 goals for and 2 against) in group play.

The Downriver U15 girls finished second in their group behind last year’s State Cup runner-up, the TNT Dynamite. The team posted a 2-1 record, with 13 goals for and 3 against to earn a wildcard berth into the next round. Coach Trevor Daniel said that he has been impressed by his team’s play thus far, and he hopes that the group will rise to the occasion once again in the knockout round. The team will be opposed by the same PSG Michigan Gators group who ended their State Cup run in the first knockout stage last year.

The Northville U18 girls were able to advance to the semifinals of last year’s tournament after winning their group and then upsetting the Michigan Gators in the quarterfinals. This season, the team has been plagued by injury more than ever; this has not stopped the resilient group from battling hard, however. The team was able to advance from group play with a wildcard berth and looks forward to the opportunity to compete in the quarterfinals once again. Though injuries still have the team playing a bit short-handed, this group has proven time and again that you can never count them out. We wish them well as they make their final trip to Saginaw as a team.

Both the Northville and Downriver U16 girls groups are excited to have earned a wildcard berth into the knockout stages of the State Cup tournament for the first time this year. Both teams have seen steady improvement over the past few years and are living proof that hard work and persistence really do pay off. The teams are excited and highly motivated to keep their State Cup dreams alive in the next round.